Mortality of the Iranian ex-prisoners of war in Iraqi detention camps (1980-1990).

BACKGROUND The present study aimed to determine the rate and cause of the mortality of the Iranian ex-prisoners of war in Iraqi detention camps during a ten- year period (1980 - 1990) according to the documented reports. METHODS The information extracted from the documented death certifications that have been provided by the Iraqi authorities and the Red Cross delegation. RESULTS At least a total of 564 Iranian prisoners of war died due to the various reasons in Iraqi detention camps that show a mortality rate of 1.4% (564/40,000). The mean captivity-to-death interval was 440 (from one to 3582) days and the registered prisoners had more duration of captivity than the unregistered (1285 vs. 215 days, P= 0.001). The median and mean ages of the individuals at the time of death were 22 and 26.4+/-13 years, respectively. The mean age of the civilians was higher than the others (45.3 vs. 23.7, P=0.0001). The cause of death was not clear for 44.3% of the individuals but among the others, infectious diseases (such as dysentery, sepsis, and meningitis) and injuries (resulting from war injuries and/or torture by Iraqi forces) were the main causes of death with 15.4% and 15.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION It seems that the mortality of the Iranian ex-prisoners of war in Iraq is more than previously reported. Therefore, more investigation is recommended to determine the exact number of the Iranian prisoners who died in Iraq.